It should also be known that the aʿyān-i thābita (immutable archetypes) of possible existents and the intellectual forms, which consist of their essences, being colored by the dye of existence does not mean that these intellectual forms have left the rank of knowledge and acquired an external existence. Such a thing is impossible, for such a meaning would (God forbid) necessitate ignorance on the part of Allah Most High, and Allah Most High is exalted above that. Rather, this means that possible existents are deprived of those perfections, and that the external wujūd (existence) corresponds to the intellectual forms that exist beyond intellectual existence. It is like a carpenter imagining a plank in his mind and then making it externally. However, in this case, the external form of the plank does not appear identically as the form in the carpenter's knowledge. Rather, an external existence corresponding to the mental form of the plank comes into being. Understand this well!
Know that, contrary to absolute nonexistence (ʿadam-i ṣirf), every other type of nonexistence, when it is colored by one of the shadows of the existential perfections that correspond to it and are reflected upon it, then existence and form are also realized upon it externally. It does not remain under the influence of these shadows. Nor does it accept any color or dye. How could it accept color or dye! For it is not the counterpart of these shadows. If it had a counterpart, then it would have to be the very Essence of Pure Existence (Ḥaḍrat-i Wujūd-i Ṣirf).
The gnostic (ʿārif) whose maʿrifa (experiential knowledge of God) is complete, after ascending to the rank of the Essence of Pure Existence (Ḥaḍrat-i Wujūd-i Ṣirf), when he comes to this station of absolute nonexistence (ʿadam-i ṣirf), by means of being colored by the rank of existence, he also attains this nonexistence, adorns and beautifies himself with it. At that time, this ʿārif, in reality, attains a beauty and goodness for all the ranks of nonexistence, both in summary and in detail, which are his essential ranks. In these ranks, both jamāl (beauty) and kamāl (perfection) may be realized. This principle of khayriyyah (goodness) that spreads to all essential ranks is reserved only for such a ʿārif. If khayriyyah extends to someone else, it is either limited to some of the detailed ranks of essential nonexistences, or it extends to all detailed ranks according to different degrees. However, this second ḥāl (spiritual state) rarely occurs.
At the rank of summarized nonexistence (martaba), which is the very essence of all evil and deficiency, no one other than the aforementioned ʿārif can attain even a scent of khayriyyah, nor can they attain any of the qualities of the union of existence and nonexistence. Thus, even the shayṭān (devil) of this ʿārif, who is characterized by perfect khayriyyah, attains the beauty of islām (submission). His nafs-i ammāra (commanding soul)...